A creationist on BBC Gloucestershire, 25 Sep 2011, 8.20am (approx). In this eight minute segment of the Sunday morning programme, John Hellings interviewed Alistair Nobel, James Williams & Nigel Steele in response to the campaign to ban the teaching of creation and Intelligent Design in UK schools. Those behind the campaign are also calling for evolution to be taught “at both primary and secondary levels in the National Curriculum and in all schools”.

Alistair Nobel and James Williams were speaking over phone lines and debated with each other. Creation Research supporter and Headmaster of The School of the Lion (a Christian school in Gloucester) Nigel Steele, was in the studio and, unusually for a Christian, was given the last word. Nigel had contacted us a few days earlier asking for background information ahead of the programme which he used to great advantage.

James Williams, a lecturer in education at Sussex University and British Humanist Association speaker, made the national headlines in 2009 when he claimed that programmes like the Flintstones (Fred & Wilma that is) misled children into believing Genesis could be true by creating a pop-culture of interaction between humans and dinosaurs. In common with all Darwinian apologists he argued that evolution is pure “science”, whilst creation and ID are religious positions.

Dr. Alistair Nobel is the Director of the UK Centre for Intelligent Design and is regarded as an Evangelical. His main argument was that ID is a strictly scientific position with no connection to ‘creationism’. He said, “ID actually is not the opposite of evolution, because ID theorists accept a number of evolutionary propositions”. Arguing that ID addresses the deeper questions of how we get the design, how we get the complexity, he responded to Williams' assertions concerning science versus religion, by making clear his conviction that the debate is between naturalistic science and science, which does not rule out a designer.

Finally, Nigel Steele was invited to comment. His first point was that the argument is not between evolutionism and creationism, but between humanism and Christianity. He illustrated this by pointing out that this new campaign’s web site is registered to the British Humanist Association and that most of the well known signatories to it are members of the BHA. He went on to argue that in this debate the fundamentalists were actually the humanists, as they are the ones who want to stifle debate in schools and in the media. Nigel’s final point was to read from Romans 1:19 & 20:“What may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead, so that they are without excuse. .He said that people like Mr. Williams are resisting that inner knowledge and are seeking to put up barriers against it in others.

Even though the interview was brought to an end at this point, we say well done to Nigel for making clear the real nature of this debate. More importantly he also made clear that the evidence of design in creation points directly to Jesus Christ as the Creator. He is the One whose divine nature and eternal power is still visible in everything He has made, even though human sin has spoilt it at every level. As Nigel said, it is that knowledge within them that the humanists are actually fighting against, not Christians who stand up for Jesus. (Ref. education, philosophy, politics, world view)